Broad coalition against the blockade of Hormuz. 20 countries demand the opening of the route

We condemn Iran's attacks in the Persian Gulf and on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as its attempts to block international shipping; We declare our readiness to provide support to ensure safe transit through the strait, said Finnish President Alexander Stubb.

Finland has thus joined the group of countries calling on Iran to immediately stop drone and missile attacks and attempts to block commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, and expressed its readiness to contribute to the efforts necessary to guarantee traffic safety in this waterway.

The declaration, initially presented on Thursday by six countries: France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan, was signed by additional countries. In addition to Finland, these are also: Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, Denmark, Latvia, Slovenia, Estonia, Norway, Sweden, Czech Republic, Romania, Bahrain and Lithuania.

It has not been specified what kind of contribution Finland could make to the efforts to unblock the Strait of Hormuz, the Finnish press commented on Saturday.

At the beginning of last week, the head of Finnish diplomacy, Elina Valtonen, stated that participation in the operation in the Middle East is not Helsinki's “top priority”, because the main tasks of the state authorities are counteracting the threat from Russia and taking initiatives to ensure the safety of maritime navigation in the Baltic Sea. The head of the Ministry of Defense, Antti Hakkanen, also rejected the possibility of Finnish forces participating in a military operation in the Middle East, justifying it with the limited potential of the Finnish Navy.

Tehran closed an important oil transport route after U.S. and Israeli forces began shelling targets in Iran on February 28.

US President Donald Trump on Friday accused NATO countries of being reluctant to participate in securing the Strait of Hormuz. In an angry statement, he called NATO countries “cowards” for refusing to help his country open the strait. In his opinion, such an operation would be “easy” and “low risk”.

From Helsinki Przemysław Molik (PAP)

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